Articles by authorhttp://spectator.org/feeds/author/208/all
enSoul Freedom at Growing Riskhttp://spectator.org/articles/62075/soul-freedom-growing-risk
<p>Religious persecution did not end with Nero and the Roman Empire. In fact, punishment of and hostility toward people of faith is increasing.</p>Tue, 17 Mar 2015 04:00:00 -0400Doug Bandow62075Preparing for the Next Debt Fighthttp://spectator.org/articles/61949/preparing-next-debt-fight
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">While the Obama administration lectures Europe about the latter’s fiscal policies, Washington continues to run deficits. The problem is bipartisan. When George W. Bush took office the national debt was $5.8 trillion. When Barack Obama took over it was $11.9 trillion. Now it is $18.2 trillion.</span></p>Thu, 05 Mar 2015 04:00:00 -0500Doug Bandow61949Death of a Great Reaganitehttp://spectator.org/articles/61449/death-great-reaganite
<p>When I was growing up the draft was an ugly rite of passage for young men. During the 1960s and early 1970s getting a low lottery number could mean death in Vietnam. Nothing seemed likely to change in the midst of the Cold War.</p><p>But when I turned 18 in 1975 no “Uncle Sam wants you” notice arrived in the mail. The United States was defending itself as a democratic republic should defend itself: through the voluntary efforts of a free people. America had created the All-Volunteer Force—which, despite a rocky start, quickly became the finest military on the planet.</p>Mon, 12 Jan 2015 04:00:00 -0500Doug Bandow61449Time to Close the Government to Close the Governmenthttp://spectator.org/articles/61342/time-close-government-close-government
<p>The year is drawing to a close and we are supposed to be happy that the lame duck Congress survived its usual year-end brinkmanship and threats of a government shutdown. Horrors! What would the helpless people do if politicians weren’t able to legislate, regulate, and dictate in the “public interest”? Why, the republic would collapse.</p><p>Not!</p>Tue, 30 Dec 2014 04:00:00 -0500Doug Bandow61342Burma Enjoys an Uneasy Peace: Time to Close Thailand’s Refugee Camps?http://spectator.org/articles/61240/burma-enjoys-uneasy-peace-time-close-thailand%E2%80%99s-refugee-camps
<p><strong><em>Mae La Refugee Camp, Thailand</em></strong></p><p class="dropcap">Trees give way to primitive wooden homes in the rolling hills approaching Mae La refugee camp on Thailand’s border with Burma. Access is controlled by the Thai army. The largest camp in Thailand, Mae La, holds 50,000 refugees. Some residents have spent their entire lives within Mae La’s confines.</p>Mon, 15 Dec 2014 04:00:00 -0500Doug Bandow61240The KGB’s Old Headquarters Lives Onhttp://spectator.org/articles/61214/kgb%E2%80%99s-old-headquarters-lives
<p><em><strong>Moscow</strong></em></p><p class="dropcap">Red Square is one of the world’s most iconic locales. Dominated by the Kremlin, St. Basil’s Cathedral, and GUM Department Store, the space looks little different from Soviet times. While Lenin’s mausoleum remains, any hint of menace is gone. Indeed, even during the worst of the USSR the square was more symbolic than threatening. For the most part no one went to the Kremlin to die.</p><p>Very different, however, is Lubyanka, just a short walk up Teatralny Proezd past the Bentley and Maserati dealerships. </p>Thu, 11 Dec 2014 04:00:00 -0500Doug Bandow61214Will Federalism Trump the Drug War?http://spectator.org/articles/60976/will-federalism-trump-drug-war
<p>Americas are angry with their politicians but nuanced in their political opinions. Voters in Alaska simultaneously ousted their Democratic Senator and legalized the use of marijuana. Floridians gave 505,000 more votes medical use of pot than they did in re-electing Republican Gov. Rick Scott.</p><p>Milton Friedman and William F. Buckley took their places on the pantheon of the Right while arguing against drug prohibition. The electorate appears to be moving their way.</p>Fri, 14 Nov 2014 04:00:00 -0500Doug Bandow60976Should Scotland Secede from the United Kingdom? http://spectator.org/articles/60396/should-scotland-secede-united-kingdom
<p>The vote over Scottish independence is coming down to the wire. Polls show a close race. It is a momentous decision that would reverse the Act of Union adopted back in 1707, but why is President Barack Obama bothering the Scots with his opinion?</p>Thu, 11 Sep 2014 04:00:00 -0400Doug Bandow60396More Christians Than Party Membershttp://spectator.org/articles/60313/more-christians-party-members
<p><em><strong>Beijing</strong></em></p><p class="dropcap">Today China’s big cities look much like urban areas anywhere else in the world. There are cars, lots of cars.</p><p>What I didn’t expect was to see a Christian “fish” on an auto. In traffic. In Beijing. Christianity is real, growing, and visible. “Religion is on the rise,” one U.S. diplomat told me.</p><p>Religion also is under attack by the Chinese government. When it comes to religious liberty in the People’s Republic of China, there’s the (surprisingly frequent) good, the (not so constant) bad, and the (still too often) ugly.</p>Wed, 27 Aug 2014 04:00:00 -0400Doug Bandow60313The Young and the Restless in Beijinghttp://spectator.org/articles/60153/young-and-restless-beijing
<p><strong><em>Beijing<br /></em></strong>Everything in China appears is big. The population is big. The cities are big. The people’s aspirations are big. The state’s ambitions are big.</p><p>The battle over the future also is big.</p>Mon, 04 Aug 2014 04:00:00 -0400Doug Bandow60153